Lorne, Victoria, Australia

It was a stormy day when All Saints’ Church was opened on November 14th 1880. There were 65 present at Matins and Holy Communion and 58 at Evensong. The First Vicar, The Reverend Jas C Love, had been preceded by lay-readers, namely Mr Bishop and Mr J Evans, and services up to now had been conducted at Erskine House and elswhere. Now, on this opening Sunday, Mr Love took the duties in the morning, in the afternoon, and in the evening. Mr Love appears to have been a wise master-builder and a faithful pastor with an eye to the future. Under his guidance the building was erected on the land presented by Mr Henry Gwynne of Geelong at Mr John Snowdon’s contract price of £280 exclusive of furnishings, excavations etc.

Four years after this, however, and ”owing to incessant complaints from visitors” it was decided to move the Church to a more central position and near to the sea. So it was rolled down the hill, across the Varna Gully, and down again to Mountjoy Parade. Then shortly it was enlarged by the addition of the Chancel, Vestry and Porch as designed by the Church’s Architect Mr Watts.

It was now a noble, well proportioned and integrated building as can be seen from the early sketches; and a recent note in the visitors book by the present Diocesan Architect, Mr Louis R Williams, is of interest and importance: “the clear glass of the leaded windows in the knave is a great joy and should be preserved”. All this work of building, consolidating and removal involved continuous effort by the Vicar and his committees, with very many meetings in Mr Loves private home in Smith Street, a house which we know as the recent home of the lateMiss Olga Armytage.

Yet, as early as 1886, it was resolved “that the debt upon the church being now cleared, steps be taken towards the erection of a parsonage on the ground acquired for this purpose and that with this object in view a fund be established called the Parsonage Fund to which contributions may hereafter be paid”.